Kala nodded. 'There's not a lot left. I'm hoping Tai will-'
'He shoulda fed him already. The boy's barely standing.'
'He was in a mood.'
'Really?' She rolled her eyes, then added, 'I guess getting staked out by your own sister will do that.' She sighed. 'I'm sure he'll get around to feeding the pup. Anyway, I'm gonna stretch my legs. See if that storm's still building. Shout if you need anything.' She glanced at Kevin with what he took to be either suspicion or amusement, maybe both, then added, serious, 'Budgie's out the front.'
'Why don't I just jump in the car and leave? Get out of your hair?' Kevin asked.
'I don't think that's a good idea,' Kala said. 'Remember the girl at the house - your girlfriend?'
He stared at her, fuming, helpless, confused. Was surprised to see sympathy in her face.
'Stay till tomorrow night,' Kala said. 'When Tai comes back and everyone's, well, calmed down, then he can give you what you need.'
'And what's that? Another bullet?'
'More blood.'
He collapsed into the sofa. 'Was that what I just drank?' he asked, wiping his mouth.
'Decant. Stored blood. It'll keep the hunger at bay. For now.' She sat near him in a stuffed armchair.
'What the hell has happened? Who is Taipan, and why were those guys after him?'
'Until Tai gives the word, I can't say too much. It wouldn't be safe for you, and it wouldn't be safe for us. But basically, Tai found out his sister was out here, so he came looking, but there was a problem and she, well, I guess you could say she called the authorities, invoked a kind of restraining order. They were gonna put him away, but we stopped them. You just kind of got caught in the middle.'
'None of that makes any sense.'
'Sorry, it's the best I can do.'
'And my dad?'
'Unlucky, I guess.'
'Unlucky? So when can I go home?'
'Not now. Trust me, you're better off with us. We can look after you, teach you; and maybe later-'
'I hurt Meg tonight. Really hurt her.'
'She'll be fine. Takes more than a little love bite to turn someone.'
'To turn them?'
'She won't change, if that's what you're worried about.'
'Jesus Christ! I was worried I'd hurt her, not if I'd made her into something - something else.'
'Just be glad I got to you and not VS.' Kala walked to the kitchen and put the electric jug on. 'God knows what they would've done.'
If you tell Taipan what we've just done, you and me, he'll kill you.
He fought the memory, was amazed Kala couldn't see the guilt on his face. 'You guys keep mentioning them,' he said, looking for distraction. 'Who are they, this Vee-Ess mob?'
'Von Schiller. Kind of like, I dunno, BP or some other bunch of arseholes. They're based in Brissie, mainly, and try to lord it over the rest of us, tell us how to behave 'n' that. Real bastards. Anyway, they had a spy watching the house. We were lucky they didn't see us slip out the back.'
'Yeah,' he said, picking his words carefully. 'Lucky.'
Kala poured milk into her cup, as though making coffee and talking about vampires were the most ordinary things in the world.
She hadn't noticed Kevin's nervousness, the way he looked over his shoulder as though expecting to see Taipan there with an axe or a gun.
'VS has a lot of clout in Queensland,' she said. 'They got their hooks in the government and the cops and, well, pretty much everyone who's anyone.'
'My dad died today,' Kevin said quietly. The words seemed shallow; should he write them out fifty times? 'And no-one knows the truth of it.'
'There's no-one to tell,' she said. 'There's no-one you can trust. No-one who can make a difference, anyway.'
'There has to be someone. Dad's gone, the servo's gone - what are we going to do?'
'Your days of pumping petrol are over, Kev. Unless you want to run an all-night servo.'
He stared at the wall, trying to see past it to a future he couldn't even begin to fathom. The present was still far too slippery.
'Come on,' she said. 'It's getting late and I think we both could use a rest. Even you creatures of the night can use some kip, especially when you're still in the change. I'll show you where you can crash. We can talk more tomorrow.' Kala pointed toward the hall. 'This way.'
He followed. House dust tickled his nostrils, along with perfume and sweat, grease, nicotine, beer. And under all of that, the distinctive odour of blood. Damn, but he was still so hungry.
'This one,' she said, opening a door.
The room was about as big as his own bedroom. Black plastic had been taped across the window, a blanket draped across the mirror on the dresser. There was a single bed with a Star Wars doona, a small table and chairs, a box of toys. A khaki backpack sat on the table, showing a can of deodorant and a black bra through its open zip.
He hesitated at the door, reluctant to enter. 'Whose room is this, anyway?'
'Mine, now.' Kala yawned. 'We keep the mirrors covered as a courtesy.'
'Hey?'
'It takes a while, sometimes, to get used to the new you. Some never do, really.'
He flexed his hand, the cuts healed, the pain gone. 'Sure.' He sat down on the bed, making the springs squeak.
She grabbed the backpack.
'You're leaving?'
'I'll crash next door. You need your space, but shout if you need anything.'
He lay back, arms behind his head, eyes fixed on the ceiling spotted with stick-on stars and moons. It struck him that the false sky was possibly the most honest thing in his life right now. He was, apparently, a monster, one of many, and out there somewhere, out there in the world that he thought he'd understood but was clearly false, other monsters were hunting him. What in the hell could he do about that?
NINE
Reece leaned against the bonnet of the rental, feeling every minute of his 70-odd years. Not that he looked that old, of course. The past 40 hadn't left any marks - not on the outside, at least. Maybe he should just leave, find a beach somewhere and grow old disgracefully. Give young Felicity her chance to step up from Gespenstenstaffel to Hunter, to be Mira's new favourite. Favourite - he hated that word. Made him sound like a flavour of ice-cream. Maybe it was a little too close to the truth. He rubbed his face, wishing for a cigarette, but the Strigoi hated
